New PPL student-4 hours, Nerves performing stalls and landings.

E

Elise Reynolds

Filing Flight Plan
Joined
Mar 6, 2020
Messages
8
Display Name
Display name:
Elise
I began training at the beginning of February and I fly once a week currently. I am wanting to fly more than once a week now to keep my mind sharp during this process. I have not yet done a stall on my own due to trying to get used to the weightless feeling of it. But I have been practicing slow flight. My CFI demonstrated multiple power off stalls my last lesson to show me what it feels like leading up to one and that alone built my confidence a bit. I really really want to try them myself now because I feel it'll only get easier if I'm the one doing it. I know it just takes practice and experience to really get a hold on the physical sensation that comes with the stall but I am doubting my abilities! I just want to get past this nervousness! Also, landings. I have virtually no issues with performing the take off but when it comes to landing I get clammy hands and my legs get shaky thinking I'm going to crash into the runway. Any advice from people who have experienced this or just anyone that can relate so I know I'm not alone? I know I'm still very early in training so it takes some getting used to but I have the irrational fear I won't ever get it. I'm so hard on myself.
 
Welcome to the forum.

I was introduced to stalls early on, and enjoyed them. The first landings have to be the most stressful part of learning to fly, but with a good instructor, you should develop confidence after a dozen or so. Actually being ready to do them solo is much longer.

Relax the grip, and the stress will fall away. I got sweaty palms until my instructor started watching and reminded me when I was holding the yoke too tight.

Where are you flying, and what airplane are you using for the training?
 
geezer said:
Welcome to the forum.

I was introduced to stalls early on, and enjoyed them. The first landings have to be the most stressful part of learning to fly, but with a good instructor, you should develop confidence after a dozen or so. Actually being ready to do them solo is much longer.

Relax the grip, and the stress will fall away. I got sweaty palms until my instructor started watching and reminded me when I was holding the yoke too tight.

Where are you flying, and what airplane are you using for the training?
Click to expand...
Hello! I fly out of GON and I fly piper cherokees
 
Last edited:
I agree with geezer in “relax the grip”. New students tend to have a death grip on the yoke as if it’s needed to keep the plane from falling out of the sky. It’s not. Let go. (hopefully your CFI is teaching trim usage) The plane know how to fly better than you and your CFI put together. Let it.

That said, don’t be a passenger. Make sure it’s doing what you want. As more lessons are done, you will see just how predictable the plane is. Move a control, it will respond a certain way. Tomorrow move that same control the same way, guess what. Same response.

It just takes time.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Everything you're going thru I went thru a long time ago. I was nervous as hell even after I got my PPL. I've been flying 30 years now and my heart rate still goes up when I'm practicing stalls.

Landings are a challenge for everyone. There's a lot to absorb, a lot to do, and a lot of judgements to make.

Pat yourself on the back when you get part of the landing right and don't beat yourself up about the things that why wrong.

Learning to control these feelings your having is a big part of becoming a pilot. It's not easy but you CAN do it. Be patient with yourself.

If things really aren't working out consider switching instructors. But don't do this lightly...
 
Slow flight and stalls are critical maneuvers that will help you begin to understand energy management necessary for making safe landings. There is nothing to be afraid of. Learn how the airplane responds in these flight regimes and how to control the airplane safely. It will take some time and repetition to absorb the sight lines and feel for landings. Have patience, it will come together.
 
It's perfectly natural to be scared doing something that seems dangerous and that you have never done before. I had no trouble with stalls, but was deathly afraid of take-offs. I had prior flight experience hang gliding which covered the stall thing, but P-factor was something I had never experienced. It took me a long time to be comfortable with taking off and landing was even worse. As others have said, give it time and it will start to feel more normal. One thing I would suggest is to try them yourself. The instructor can take over at any time and if you are doing it, vs being a passenger, it can take some of the fear away.
 
What airplane are you flying?
 
Elise Reynolds said:
when it comes to landing I get clammy hands and my legs get shaky thinking I'm going to crash into the runway. Any advice from people who have experienced this or just anyone that can relate so I know I'm not alone? I know I'm still very early in training so it takes some getting used to but I have the irrational fear I won't ever get it. I'm so hard on myself.
Click to expand...
You are not alone. Even after getting rated, having flown a few different aircraft, and accumulated over a hundred hours some have experienced these same feelings and never got past them.
 
It is natural to be afraid of the unknown, and stalls fell into that category for me. When I would go out solo to practice stalls, I would do 10 or do in a row, turn around and do 10 or so more.

When I would start my feet would be shaking so badly it sounded like someone was drumming on the rudder pedals.

After the first 20 the shaking would get better, and I wouldn't return to the airport till the shakes were gone.

I never learned to like stalls, but did master them, and respected them.

Keep working at it you will be fine.

Sent from my SM-N970U using Tapatalk
 
Lndwarrior said:
Everything you're going thru I went thru a long time ago. I was nervous as hell even after I got my PPL. I've been flying 30 years now and my heart rate still goes up when I'm practicing stalls.

Landings are a challenge for everyone. There's a lot to absorb, a lot to do, and a lot of judgements to make.

Pat yourself on the back when you get part of the landing right and don't beat yourself up about the things that why wrong.

Learning to control these feelings your having is a big part of becoming a pilot. It's not easy but you CAN do it. Be patient with yourself.

If things really aren't working out consider switching instructors. But don't do this lightly...
Click to expand...
Thanks! I think my instructor is fine, he's very patient and will explain anything I ask about and demonstrate if necessary. I'm only 4 hours in too so I feel like if I needed a change in that aspect I'd figure it out a bit later. I think it's more controlling the feelings as you described. I feel confident today, I just have moments of weakness :) It's scary as **** but I love it so much making it worth it. I'm figuring myself out as well as the plane.
 
tmyers said:
It is natural to be afraid of the unknown, and stalls fell into that category for me. When I would go out solo to practice stalls, I would do 10 or do in a row, turn around and do 10 or so more.

When I would start my feet would be shaking so badly it sounded like someone was drumming on the rudder pedals.

After the first 20 the shaking would get better, and I wouldn't return to the airport till the shakes were gone.

I never learned to like stalls, but did master them, and respected them.

Keep working at it you will be fine.

Sent from my SM-N970U using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Oh yes, I may never "like" them but I'm certain i'll get a grip on them with practice making them easier. Just going to keep going and make it work. Thanks for your input :)
 
Hang 4 said:
It's perfectly natural to be scared doing something that seems dangerous and that you have never done before. I had no trouble with stalls, but was deathly afraid of take-offs. I had prior flight experience hang gliding which covered the stall thing, but P-factor was something I had never experienced. It took me a long time to be comfortable with taking off and landing was even worse. As others have said, give it time and it will start to feel more normal. One thing I would suggest is to try them yourself. The instructor can take over at any time and if you are doing it, vs being a passenger, it can take some of the fear away.
Click to expand...
I agree. I think exposing myself fully to what's going on will be helpful. I'll tell him I'm nervous but I want to do it alone. I need to learn.
 
Get an instructor go up and try stalling and when it stalls just let go of all of the controls. See what happens. Try stalling it with the ball not quite centered and as soon as it stalls just let go of everything and see what happens. I think you will be surprised what happens or what doesn't happen. Unless you are really trying hard to spin it the plane should recover on its own.
 
Don't quit, try to fly twice a week, do what your instructor asks even if it makes you nervous. It will get better. Try to relax.
 
Just know the the Cherokee has the most benign stall of anything I have ever flown, by far. And there’s probably nothing you could do to screw anything up so badly that your instructor can’t recover from it. That’s why he or she is there. And they generally have a very strong sense of self preservation, so you’ll know if you’re doing something wrong.

Landing freaked me out at first too... it’s hard to get used to intentionally pointing the thing at the ground! But you’ll get used to it, and even get to enjoy it. It’s one of those things that you can learn to do fairly quickly, then spend a very long time learning to master it and do it really well most of the time.

If you ever get discouraged about your landings, go fly commercial a few times. Even the pros don’t do it perfectly all the time!
 
You’re definitely not alone in what you’re experiencing. Landings and stalls are somewhat difficult to grasp when you’re just starting out. I was a perfectionist in doing my training and wanted to get everything right on the 1st shot but it doesn’t happen that way. These maneuvers take a little time to really nail them.

With the stalls, it’s important to recognize what’s happening when you’re leading up to it. I did all my training starting out in a Cherokee also and learned to really look for the wing buffeting before the drop and how to recover from there.

As far as landings go, you just have to learn to go easy on yourself because they take practice and feel for the plane. They’re not always going to be perfect but they do get better with time. Just focus on the right time to flare and the plane will land when it’s ready. And don’t overthink an occasional rough one. Any landing you can walk away from is considered a good one.
 
I found that I became a lot more comfortable with stalls, when I did spin and upset training. Ask your instructor to do a falling leaf maneuver with you too. The more exposure you have to these things the more comfortable you’ll feel about them and realize they’re not that bad.
 
Your experience is fairly normal and with only 4 hours I wouldn’t expect you to feel very different. It’s not a race. Just keep learning and getting acquainted with all the sensations. It’s a 3D world in the plane which is different than anything else you’ve done. Also I recently had CFI do a stall and no recovery - just watched the plane nose drop - then go back up - then stall again - drop, then up - then down, etc. As long as ball is centered the plane keeps flying to its trim condition. That’s in a power on stall I should add. Keep at it. You’ll have a great sense of accomplishment when it all comes together for you.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
chemgeek said:
Slow flight and stalls are critical maneuvers that will help you begin to understand energy management necessary for making safe landings. There is nothing to be afraid of. Learn how the airplane responds in these flight regimes and how to control the airplane safely. It will take some time and repetition to absorb the sight lines and feel for landings. Have patience, it will come together.
Click to expand...

This.... Far too many instructors try to push landings too early in the learning process. Long before the building blocks are there. I have seen some CFIs doing touch-n-go landings with a student on their 2nd or 3rd flight. That is just ridiculous.

Take the time to learn all the "boring" stuff up high at a safe altitude. Once you have the individual pieces and can string them together into a contiguous flow, only then will you be ready to take on landings. They will actually come along a lot easier by then.
 
I'd be more worried about a new student who thought landings were easy and nothing could go wrong.

I (and probably everyone else) got "concerned" about landing when just starting. I think that would place you in the "normal" category.

Me? Sure, it took a while before I got comfortable, stopped over thinking things. A trick I used was to hold the yoke with only a thumb and a finger. It stopped me from over controlling and I learned that the plane naturally wants to be stable (Skyhawk). I also started with a mental image of "dancing" with the airplane. Not today's hipster random motion, buzzing football player table top game (look it up) dancing, but where someone leads, and the other person follows. I turn yoke, plane banks. I pull throttle back, plane descends. I pull yoke up, plane slows down. I even count in my head (123, 123).

Strange? Yeah - but hey, do whatever works for you.

Kind of like driving a car. After awhile, you'll have new neural pathways, new muscle memories, etc. Your sub conscious brain also teaches itself from repeated experiences that nothing bad is going to happen because you're following the right steps when landing. It all gets easier.

(BTW - can you tell I have an Industrial Pysch background? :cool:)
 
Elise Reynolds said:
Thanks! I think my instructor is fine, he's very patient and will explain anything I ask about and demonstrate if necessary. I'm only 4 hours in too so I feel like if I needed a change in that aspect I'd figure it out a bit later. I think it's more controlling the feelings as you described. I feel confident today, I just have moments of weakness :) It's scary as **** but I love it so much making it worth it. I'm figuring myself out as well as the plane.
Click to expand...

The way to control your feelings is to remember that you control the airplane, not the other way around. The aircraft is very predictable, and will respond consistently. Learn to make the proper inputs and learn the proper flight "reflexes" and you are the master. You will discover that stalls are not scary at all, but rather predictable and typically quite benign. I know too many pilots that are deathly afraid of slow flight or stalls, harboring an irrational fear that they will fall out of the sky somehow. As a result these pilot have poor energy management skills and find it difficult to land their airplanes properly without using scads of runway. Learn the flight cues up high so that you will know how to confidently control your airplane down low. I actually enjoy slow flight, slips, and stalls, and practice in my own plane on a regular basis. It's a pussycat in slow flight and you have to work to actually get it to stall instead of just mush.
 
First, whatever anxiety and difficulties you are having after 4 hours is something virtually all of us experienced during our training and perhaps beyond.

An almost universal first behavior it over-controlling the airplane. This is a result of anxiety. "Relax your grip" addresses some of that anxiety and trusting the airplane addresses some of that anxiety.

When you do your own stalls, you will not notice the physical sensations as much. You will be concentrating on recovery. When you mentioned weightlessness, I was surprised. It is not a sensation I recall experiencing during stall training, though I do remember nausea :)

According to the Nall Safety Reports, other than doing something negligent, the most dangerous phase of flight is not the landing. It is the takeoff. The vast majority of spamcam accidents are in the landing phase. The majority of fatalities is in the takeoff phase.

Why?

Landing is a low and slow flight phase. The entire goal of landing is bleeding off energy.
Take off is a low and fast flight phase. The entire goal of takeoff is gaining enough energy to liftoff and climb.

My point is, landings are important (of course), but do not take takeoffs for granted. Strive for perfect takeoffs and give them as much care as landings--track the centerline, use your feet and ailerons as indicated for crosswind takeoffs.

Landings gone awry result in bent metal and some injuries.
Takeoffs gone awry result in deaths.

You will do fine. Trust yourself. Trust your CFI. Trust the airplane. If you can schedule lessons twice a week, your training will be shorter in elapsed time and less expensive, as you will retain more from lesson to lesson. Much less relearning.

Finally, do NOT stress about hours before solo or total hours before certification. It takes as long as it takes. I took longer than most to solo and certify mostly due to only a single lesson per week in a locale where the weather sucks most of the year (Seattle-ish). But there were some skills it just took me longer to master.
 
Lol. When I started the running joke my CFI has was about me trying to dig holes in the runway with the nosegear at Flagler Beach.
plus the first time I got in plane I tried to taxi and turn the plane to the right with yoke and not pedals. Had to shut down and push back as I almost took out another plane on the line.
 
I big part of flying is confidence. The more you do it, the more your confidence grows. Once you "get it" you will feel like a rockstar.
I too was uncomfortable doing stalls, nearly 500 hours later, I still don't "like" them. But, when flying something new I stall it power off to find out where actual stall speed is so I have an idea of where to start for a landing speed.
Power on stalls in a high powered plane, now those I still don't like, nose to the sky and it just hangs on the prop. I don't like that feeling.
 
You're still pretty early on in your training. Fly by your airplane's numbers and work on your scan and you will get exponentially better.
 
The most important quality a student pilot can have is persistence. The more hours you have practicing correctly, the better muscle memory you’ll have. And, the slower things will seem to happen in the cockpit so you’ll seem to have more time to make corrections in flight and when landing.

Muscle memory and time slowing down will take a while to happen, so be patient and persistent until you “get it”
 
I was puzzled as well, like Domenick, regarding the weightlessness. Maybe your CFI does a more aggressive recovery than I do.
 
Elise Reynolds said:
I began training at the beginning of February and I fly once a week currently. I am wanting to fly more than once a week now to keep my mind sharp during this process. I have not yet done a stall on my own due to trying to get used to the weightless feeling of it. But I have been practicing slow flight. My CFI demonstrated multiple power off stalls my last lesson to show me what it feels like leading up to one and that alone built my confidence a bit. I really really want to try them myself now because I feel it'll only get easier if I'm the one doing it. I know it just takes practice and experience to really get a hold on the physical sensation that comes with the stall but I am doubting my abilities! I just want to get past this nervousness! Also, landings. I have virtually no issues with performing the take off but when it comes to landing I get clammy hands and my legs get shaky thinking I'm going to crash into the runway. Any advice from people who have experienced this or just anyone that can relate so I know I'm not alone? I know I'm still very early in training so it takes some getting used to but I have the irrational fear I won't ever get it. I'm so hard on myself.
Click to expand...

I was never afraid of stalls as a student. But on my first ever discovery flight, I was scared of basically everything. I spent a lot of time on a flight sim but never knew the instrument panel on the Cessna 172 which I what I flew. I’ve flown a Cherokee as well. That was three years ago and recently passed my check ride. My advice is practice in a simulator much more, you won’t get the feeling but you’ll have the instinct for the procedural aspect. Same thing in the sim for the landings.

As to making your landings better, always look down the runway which is what everyone told me. Kind of like driving, if you look 10 feet in front of you, your workload increases.

My best tip for landings and basically anytime you are flying is be more assertive on the controls. If you something happening like losing altitude or steep sink rate on landing round out, correct it quickly but smoothly, don’t just hold it and wait for something to happen then react.

The training aircraft take a huge beating on landings. You’d be surprised. With an instructor and my grandfather. I flared the aircraft too early and the aircraft dropped 5 feet in a stall over the runway and just bounced but landed safely. Didn’t hurt either.

good luck in your training. Flying is fun.
 
Update: had another lesson today, just ground work because the weather was terrible but I learned SO much in those 2 hours and my instructor and I have a bond now so there's trust which is helpful. I'm WAY more confident and ready to stall :) Thanks for all the advice to everyone who has replied
 
Renesh Kumaresan said:
I was never afraid of stalls as a student. But on my first ever discovery flight, I was scared of basically everything. I spent a lot of time on a flight sim but never knew the instrument panel on the Cessna 172 which I what I flew. I’ve flown a Cherokee as well. That was three years ago and recently passed my check ride. My advice is practice in a simulator much more, you won’t get the feeling but you’ll have the instinct for the procedural aspect. Same thing in the sim for the landings.

As to making your landings better, always look down the runway which is what everyone told me. Kind of like driving, if you look 10 feet in front of you, your workload increases.

My best tip for landings and basically anytime you are flying is be more assertive on the controls. If you something happening like losing altitude or steep sink rate on landing round out, correct it quickly but smoothly, don’t just hold it and wait for something to happen then react.

The training aircraft take a huge beating on landings. You’d be surprised. With an instructor and my grandfather. I flared the aircraft too early and the aircraft dropped 5 feet in a stall over the runway and just bounced but landed safely. Didn’t hurt either.

good luck in your training. Flying is fun.
Click to expand...
Hahah you saying they take a beating makes me laugh a little because my instructor always says, jokingly, "You have to crash into the runway a few hundred times before you get it down".
 
1) Landings: I was lucky. My CFI had me do the landing on my discovery flight. Literally talked me through each step. It was the best landing I had in my first month flying. More CFIs really need to let students land right away and get comfortable.

2) Stalls. I HATED stalls as a student. I think I have some built in stall awareness that makes me want to recover super quickly. Turn them into a technical exercise. How to stall in different situations. It will get you more comfortable.

3) I got really comfortable in slow flight early. In fact, I handled the plane better in slow flight than regular flight during my initial student pilot days. You may learn more about aircraft control in slow flight than any part of your PPL training (you learn way more during your instrument).

Nothing to be scared or. You'll do great. Just break the skills down.
 
Full disclosure: When I was a student I would go out and fly around and put "stall practice" in my log. I had scared the bejesus out of my instructor by shoving the nose way down until we were almost vertical and that made me gun-shy about doing it on my own. Several decades later, with several thousand hours in my logbook(s) and an ATP in my wallet I can look back on those days....made me do a better job of introducing stalls to my students, for sure!!

I like the "falling leaf" as a means of getting rid of the fear: Carb heat on, flaps as desired, power back to idle, try to hold the nose on the horizon. Pretty soon you will feel a burble as disturbed air impinges on the stabilizer, but ignore it for the moment and the nose will fall through the horizon. Let it. The airplane will enter a shallow dive. Let it. Now you are flying a glider. Then use the yoke to bring it back up to the horizon and repeat until you have lost enough altitude to be concerned about it....add power, climb back up to 3000' agl or so and do another series of falling leafs. You will soon get used to the sinking feeling, but more importantly the seat of your pants will tell you when the wing starts to fly again...a very nice feeling, and one that tells you that you have full control whenever you need it. Get that behind you and then progress to power-on stalls and turning stalls.

Having said all that, I am not a fan of solo stall practice. Get your fix with a CFI in the right seat.

As N1120A says, get comfortable with slow flight...it is hard to land if you don't slow down!

There are YouTubes that you can watch.

Bob Gardner
 
Last edited:
Gonna ask a question for the OP.

I'm not kidding here, and neither am I "talking down".

Do you understand what a stall is? What do you understand/think you understand about it. What do you know about getting into one and getting out of one.

The reason I ask is that a) the general public has no idea. b) most early pilots don't either.

As with most phenomenon, the more you understand it, the more likely you are to not be spooked by it.
 
Rgbeard said:
Gonna ask a question for the OP.

I'm not kidding here, and neither am I "talking down".

Do you understand what a stall is? What do you understand/think you understand about it. What do you know about getting into one and getting out of one.

The reason I ask is that a) the general public has no idea. b) most early pilots don't either.

As with most phenomenon, the more you understand it, the more likely you are to not be spooked by it.
Click to expand...
She probably does know what a stall is. But I’m assuming she is early in her training where the classroom knowledge blanks away when you fly the plane due to excitement or nervousness. That was my experience for the first 10 hours.
 
Renesh Kumaresan said:
She probably does know what a stall is. But I’m assuming she is early in her training where the classroom knowledge blanks away when you fly the plane due to excitement or nervousness. That was my experience for the first 10 hours.
Click to expand...
Before we assume what she knows, how about hearing it from her?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top